


ælfe

by LazuliAlekto



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Rated for future chapters, Tags to be added as I go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-24
Updated: 2018-03-25
Packaged: 2019-04-07 09:40:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14078094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LazuliAlekto/pseuds/LazuliAlekto
Summary: Ignis is fascinated by a statue that he comes across on the journey to discover his true name.  He finds that once he discovers his name, he does not wish to leave the sad figure alone.  It is the first to hear his name out loud, it draws him in a way that he wants to understand.A little bit of a reworking of the sleeping beauty story.





	1. Chapter 1

 

  A tall figure moved silently through the detritus on the forest floor, nary a sound made as each step was taken, no snap of twig, nor crunch of leaves underfoot.  A small smile tugged at his lips as he viewed the change of seasons making its presence felt through the colour of the leaves of the trees around him, soft greens giving way to amber and gold, hints of scarlet scattered throughout, wind bringing scents of damp earth and blooming flowers.  The lithe male stooped and lifted a mushroom from the forest floor, a wider smile spreading across his face.

  A member of the Kin, or the People as they called themselves, he was possessed of the regal beauty that was a hallmark of their race.  Men called them elves or the ælfe, meaning ‘white being’ for the ethereal pale skin they possessed, or huldra, ‘hidden being’ as they were at one with the forests they tended to reside in, able to blend and seemingly disappear at will.  Tall, lithe, long limbed and graceful in each movement, thin elegant brows above bright green intelligent eyes, thick dark lashes framing them as he scanned the landscape around him.  High cheekbones common to his People, scattered with several freckles, a wide mouth, his slight overbite a touch unusual though his lush lips weren’t.  As with most of the Kin his expressions were sparse, subtle things, exuberance rare.  The ælfe, known by his ‘birth name’ of Sage for the knowledge that burned in his soul and the colour of his eyes, was on a quest that all his Kin took once they reached adulthood at around thirty turns of their star.  Sage had felt the pull in his heart, bidding fare thee well to his mother and father as he headed off on his name quest.  To find his true name.

  Tucking honey brown hair behind his pointed lobeless ears he swivelled his head from side to side, assessing which direction to head next.  To someone watching it may have looked like mindless meandering, yet the ælfe knew where he was going as sure as he knew the colour of his eyes or the scent of jasmine after rain, it was simply a matter of which route.  Through the mountain pass, or the longer more wandering path through the valleys.  Time being relative to an ælfe as long lived as they were, he chose the valley path.  It would allow him the luxury of collecting herbs and fungi as he walked.

  He had been on his journey a week when he felt a pair of feline eyes tracking his every move.

  He halted and turned, lips quirking as he spotted a coeurl stalking closer.  Narrowing his gaze he slowly extracted his twin daggers and brandished them, not to threaten the predator, merely to inform the animal that he was armed and would defend himself.  The feline sat on its haunches, not in order to take particles from the air and charge them in readiness for a strike, but simply to regard the ælfe before him.  Sage made a low purring noise in his throat and the coeurl chirped back, striding forward and bumping its forehead against his leg.  Sage chuckled deeply, tucking his weapons away he reached out and stroked the silky fur around the feline’s ears.  A rumbling purr emanated from the coeurl as it leaned into his caressing hand.

  “Oh, you are lovely,” he cooed, sinking gracefully sitting cross legged and stared directly into the iridescence of the coeurl’s eyes.  It rubbed against his cheek.  “Do you have kits nearby, hmm?”

  The coeurl nudged him again, blinking slowly in a languid feline way.

  “No?  On your own, as am I?”  Sage stroked its fur as it nestled its large head in his lap.  “I seek my name, my lovely friend, it is time I had one, a proper one.”  He gave the coeurl a small smile, “I feel I will find more than I seek.”

  The coeurl blinked again, tilting its head to one side, observing the ælfe with the typical somnolence of a feline, thoroughly irreverent.

  Sage bestowed a kiss to the coeurl’s nose and rose, adjusting the straps of his carry bag and waved his fare thee well to his new friend.  He chuckled again as he felt the coeurl bump his hand and press against his leg as he strode away.  It appeared he would have a companion for at least part of his journey.

  The pair walked side by side for several more days before the coeurl chirped at him and nudged his leg before vanishing into the scrub, only the swaying of a few leaves showing where it had gone.  The ælfe smiled indulgently and continued on his way in silence.  With the massive feline gone, his steps were dogged by smaller animals, curious about the traveller.  They watched him as he gathered what he would need for a meal, using a simple fire spell to heat some water, he lost his thoughts in the play of flames above the stone pedestal he sat his bowl on.  As the water within heated he shook his head and added some leaves and steeped them, creating a fragrant tea.  Humming softly to himself he let the brew cool a little, then sipped it as he watched the sun set.  His gaze wandered to the edge of a lake, frowning as he noted a statue resting on a plinth.  He rose slowly, tea forgotten.  Eyes locked on the frozen figure he circled it before he moved closer to take in the details.

  It was forlorn, emanating a sadness that brought tears to his green eyes.  A male of his own Kin, the long pointed tips of his ears giving it away.  One hand to his chest over his heart, the other reaching out imploringly, the marble ælfe drew Sage as nothing ever had before.

  “Who are you?” he whispered to the statue, so life-like he thought it might answer his query.  He reached out a deft fingered hand, tentatively stroking the cool marble.  It had been created with such care, incredible attention to detail.  Black onyx for hair, sapphire chips for eyes, pale pink granite for lips.  As his fingers coasted over the thigh of the statue he felt a ripple in the air around him and he paused, eyes wide as his lips parted.

  Without understanding why, the ælfe brought his bag over and he slept beside it.

  When he woke he created another fire, flames licking over his fingertips, gaze flicking from statue to flames.

  “My name is Ignis,” he murmured to the statue.

  Ignis was sure the statue didn’t look so morose anymore.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

  Ignis couldn’t leave, his place beside the quiet of the lake serene and feeling like a home.  It was confusing.  The statue hadn’t changed since that first day, Ignis indeed, was not even sure it really had changed at all.  He had convinced himself it was a figment of his imagination.

  The ripple through the atmosphere around him as he touched it, that was harder to pass off as fanciful imaginings.  He was enamoured of the still figure, his gamine beauty, the sadness in his sapphire eyes, the plumpness of his lips.  As Ignis sat by his created fire of an evening, he watched the play of flames flickering over the statue, making it seem even more alive.  He had climbed the plinth once and placed his palm to his chest, certain he would feel the beat of his heart, this rise and fall of breath in his breast.  He couldn’t explain the pain he’d felt in his own that there was no movement.

  “Who are you?” he asked him day after day, soft whisperings lost upon the breeze. 

  The season changed, air growing colder, trees losing their foliage.  Ignis constructed a small shelter, knowing he was at too low an altitude to experience snows, but that it would still be bitterly cold in the depth of winter.  He could not leave, would not leave.  He was transfixed by the riddle of the statue.  It felt wrong to leave it alone.  It felt wrong to leave _him_ alone.  Ignis couldn’t even bring himself to think of the statue as an inanimate object.

  He studied it closely.  The plinth was worn, yet the crafted flesh of the ælfe was pristine and no birds roosted on him.  No small animals rested in his shadow.  Only Ignis ventured close to him.

  So Ignis stayed.

  He hunted, making furs to sleep on and wrap himself in, curing hides to create bags and extra shelter from the winter rains that would come.  He carved new utensils from fallen branches and burls of wood he found.  He swept leaves away from the plinth.  In a fit of whimsy he created a fur lined cloak for the statue, smiling at the regal air it produced as he settled it around his shoulders.

  Touching the statue’s cheek he caressed the marble pulling his hand away swiftly as another odd ripple swept outwards like a pebble dropped in a pond.  He frowned and stepped down from the plinth, green eyes bright as he tilted his head regarding the statue thoughtfully.

  “You are not just a statue, are you?”

  Ignis blinked slowly, turning his head to look at the form on the plinth out of the corner of his eyes, the statue flickering strangely in his periphery.  An enchantment then.  He circled it, keeping his eyes averted a pale blue glow encasing him. 

  A low rumbling purr sounded behind Ignis and he smiled softly.

  “Well met, my friend,” he cooed to the coeurl as it nudged his leg.  Absentmindedly he stroked it as he turned his gaze fully on the ælfe on the stone plinth.  “He is frozen, I know not why nor how.”

  The coeurl mewled and paced around the statue, rubbing its face against the stone.  Iridescent feline eyes met his own, plaintive as it stalked back to where Ignis stood.  It sat on its haunches and stared at him unblinking.

  “You feel it too?” Ignis murmured.  “What can I do to help him?”

  Ignis sank down, crossing his legs as he stared up at the statue.  The coeurl paced in front of him then laid its head in his lap, blinking up at him languidly.  As close to a shrug as was possible for a feline.  Ignis rolled his eyes, yet he still stroked the silky fur.

  “He is so beautiful, his eyes are kind for all their sadness, it seems such a tragedy for him to be frozen in time.”

  The coeurl rolled on its side, lifting a heavy paw, claws sheathed it swatted at Ignis’ face, planting its pads over Ignis’ mouth.  Ignis rolled his eyes as he removed the paw, taking the hint and falling silent.

  That evening, wrapped in his new furs, coeurl laying over his feet and keeping them cozy, Ignis dreamed.

  Ignis was laughing, carefree and giddy, his arms around someone.  He looked down at the ælfe in his arms, his black hair ruffled by the breeze, stormy blue eyes locked on his own, plump lips parted as he smiled up at Ignis.  Ignis reached his hands up, cupping his face and he bent his head and pressed their lips together, the lovely ælfe melting in his embrace, smiling against Ignis’ lips.  Arms curled around Ignis’ waist, drawing him closer, his name whispered in his ear, breath warm against his skin.  It sent a shiver down his spine and the other ælfe chuckled, a musical sound, his arms tightening around Ignis as he sought his mouth for another kiss.  Ignis’ heart swelled in his chest, desire spreading through him like fire in his veins, his lips slotted against the others, feeling natural and _right_.  He opened his eyes to find his partner gone, his hand reaching out, pain spearing his chest as he was torn asunder from his love, screaming silently.  Ignis swung around to find the other ælfe mounting the plinth, steps weary, shoulders slumped.  When he looked back, Ignis could see him mouth the words ‘find me’ as his body turned to marble gradually.  The ælfe reached out as the transformation completed, his own cry echoing in his head as he sat upright panting harshly.

  The coeurl mewled in confusion, rough tongue licking away Ignis’ tears.  Ignis buried his face in the coeurl’s fur, clinging to it for comfort as he tried to calm the racing of his heart.

  He disentangled himself from the feline reluctantly, making his way out of his little makeshift shelter.

  The moon painted the statue in tones of silver, Ignis falling to his knees as he took in the ælfe on the plinth.

  “I knew you once…in another life we were…oh ye Gods, why have you done this?  Why show me this now and not let me know how to bring him back?” Ignis sobbed into his hands.  Face streaming with tears he crawled to the statue, hands gripping the plinth as he looked up.  He inhaled shakily.

  The statue had moved, both arms reaching out, his lips parted, eyes piercing Ignis’ soul.

  “Noctis,” he whispered, “your name is Noctis.”  Memories of a past life flooded him, tumbling though his head.  He climbed up the plinth and wrapped his arms about the ælfe frozen in time.  “I loved you once, I love you now.”

  The sound of stone grating on stone startled him and he looked down to find the statue of his past love looking up at him.  A voice echoed in his head, ‘Ignis.’

  The air rippled around them both as Ignis bent his head, hands cupping Noctis’ cold face as his wet lips pressed against pink granite.  A gasp not his own, warmth spreading over stone lips, Ignis fell back, landing hard.  He stared dumbstruck as stone melted into flesh, a faint blush blooming on cheeks long frozen. 

  Noctis smiled, stepping down from his perch on the plinth, kneeling beside Ignis, warm arms wrapped around him and a pair of very real, very mobile lips found his own.  Ignis surged forward, hand tangling in soft raven tresses, his mouth parting, tongue questing for Noctis’, their kiss awakening more memories as they knelt in damp grass.

  “You found me,” Noctis murmured, his voice as familiar to Ignis as his own.  “You found me, Iggy.”

  “I am so sorry it took me so long,” Ignis whispered into Noctis’ neck, holding his love tight.

  Noctis shook his head, “you had to be born again, it took time for your soul to find the right place, the right body.”  Noctis pulled back and swept a thumb under Ignis’ eye, wiping away the tracks of his tears, “it’s ok now, none of it matters.”

  Ice crept into both their veins, a soft voice reaching them both.

  “O Chosen King, it does matter, the curse is not fully lifted.”


End file.
